Conjoule, the Germany-based operator of an online marketplace where renewable energy can be traded, has raised €4.5m ($5.1m) in a series A round that included a €3m investment by Energy utility Tokyo Electron Power, Coindesk reported on Monday. The funding will be used to expand Conjoule’s technical team as it prepares to launch its platform, which enables users with solar panels installed on their house to sell power to nearby consumers, following a series of pilot projects this year.
US-based antimicrobial therapeutics startup Locus Biosciences closed $5m in convertible note financing on Monday that was led by internet group Tencent. The round included non-profit research organisation North Carolina Biotechnology Center, and the proceeds will be used to advance infectious disease product programs to target antibiotic-resistant infections and other diseases related to the microbiome.
RiskLens, the US-based creator of a software platform that quantifies cyber risk, completed a $5m series A round on Tuesday that included Dell Technologies Capital, the corporate venturing vehicle for computing equipment maker Dell. The round was led by Osage Venture Partners with participation from Paladin Capital Group and Kick-Start, and followed $1.6m in equity financing across two rounds in 2015, according to regulatory filings.
Poq, the UK-based creator of a shopping app development platform, raised £3.5m ($4.3m) on Wednesday in a round led by small and medium-sized business finance provider Beringea that included financial services firm Barclays and real estate investment manager Meyer Bergman. The round took Poq’s overall funding to £7m, its past investment coming from Beringea, Seedcamp and Venrex.
Financial services firm Julius Baer paid an undisclosed amount for a minority stake of undisclosed size in US-based wealth management technology developer Nectar Financial on Tuesday. The investment was made alongside Nectar’s announcement that it has launched a research and development vehicle called Nectar Digital Lab.
Diversified conglomerate Mitsui has provided Rs 200m ($3.1m) of series A funding for India-based automotive repair and maintenance technology startup Smart Auto Systems, the Economic Times reported on Monday. The capital, which may form part of a larger round, will support geographic expansion and development of the company’s technology, a source close to the deal told ET.
Lenovo Capital and Incubator Group, the strategic investment subsidiary of computing equipment producer Lenovo, has led a RMB20m ($2.9m) series A round for China-based medical imaging technology developer Imsight Medical, China Money Network reported today. Imsight was founded in March this year and was developed in Lenovo Capital’s incubator.
Financial services provider UBS Financial Services invested an undisclosed sum in US-based alternative investment platform iCapital Network on Tuesday. The investment came after an undisclosed amount of funding from BlackRock in December 2016 and $22.4m in funding across three rounds between 2013 and 2015, according to press releases and regulatory filings, from investors including financial services firm Credit Suisse’s Private Fund Group, Eaton Partners, Park Hill Group, Evercore, Pivot Investment Partners, Monument Group, Capstone Partners and Gen II Fund Services.
DG Lab Fund, the joint investment venture formed by internet company Digital Garage and financial services provider Daiwa Securities Group, led a $2.6m series A round for US-based luxury goods authentication technology developer Entrupy on Wednesday. The round, which included angel investor Zach Coelius, will go to product development as Entrupy looks to strengthen its hardware capabilities and increase its global partnerships.
Mendel.ai, the US-based creator of an artificial intelligence tool that can secure and analyse unstructured data from medical literature, disclosed a $2m seed round that featured DeNa Strategic Investments, a corporate venturing subsidiary of internet company DeNA, on Tuesday. DCM Ventures and Bootstrap Labs co-led the round, which included Launch Capital and individual investor Mark Goldstein.
Metamoto, a US-based provider of testing and simulation technology for autonomous system software developers, completed a $2m seed round on Wednesday that included compliance and advisory services provider UL, which invested through its UL Corporate Ventures unit. VC fund Motus Ventures led the round, which also featured Western Technology Investment, V1.vc, SK Ventures and Synapse Partners.
Financial services firm Intesa Sanpaolo invested an undisclosed amount in Iwoca, the UK-based operator of a financing platform for small and medium-sized enterprises, on Monday through its strategic investment vehicle, Neva Finventures. Iwoca had previously received £38m ($49m) across three equity rounds from investors including CommerzVentures, the VC arm of financial services firm Commerzbank, as well as Prime Ventures, Acton Capital Partners, Global Founders Capital and Redline Capital.
Vidcode, the US-based developer of a platform that teaches teenagers how to code, has raised $1.5m in a seed round featuring educational content provider BrainPop, as well as ZhenFund, Rethink Education, NYU Ventures, CoVenture, Evan Korth Syndicate, Cherry Ventures and angel investor Stephano Kim, TechCrunch has reported. The startup received $100,000 from Intel Capital, the corporate venturing arm of chipmaker Intel, in 2015 when it took part in the corporate’s Intel Education Accelerator, and graduated from Y Combinator’s accelerator in 2016.
Financial services comparison platform Gocompare has provided an undisclosed amount of funding for MortgageGym, the UK-based developer of a robo-advisor for mortgages, Business Insider reported on Tuesday. MortgageGym had previously raised £2.5m ($3.2m) from investors including China Pacific Capital, Trifecta Capital and angel investors Gaby Salem and Henry Ritchotte, according to Business Insider.
Awin, a marketing subsidiary of media group Axel Springer, has invested an undisclosed sum in Tailify, the UK-based developer of a marketing platform for social media influencers, as part of a $1m seed round that included Founders Factory and various undisclosed angel investors, Tech City News reported on Wednesday. Seed Capital Denmark invested an undisclosed amount in Tailify in 2014, and Awin plans to collaborate with Tailify post-investment.
Macrovue, the Australia-based creator of a thematic investment platform, has raised A$1.25m ($1m) from financial services firm AMP, Inception Asset Management and angel investors including James Goodwin, Smart Company reported on Monday. AMP reportedly invested A$1.5m in Macrovue in September 2016 in order to help launch the startup.
Provenance, a UK-based developer of blockchain-focused supply chain technology, has received $800,000 in seed capital from Humanity United, Plug and Play Tech Center, Digital Currency Group and angel investors including Alexsis de Raadt-St.James, Coindesk reported on Tuesday. Provenance graduated from Wayra, the accelerator formed by telecom group Telefónica, in 2013.
Online messaging software provider Slack has invested an undisclosed amount in Polybit, the US-based creator of app development technology developer StdLib, through its corporate venturing unit, Slack Fund. Polybit had raised $2m in late last month in a seed round led by BlueYard Capital that included Liquid 2 Ventures, Nordic Makers Venture Group and assorted angel investors.
Digital media and services company Spout Entertainment Group has paid S$1m ($730,000) for a 27.7% stake in Singapore-based online media startup Grvty Media, Tech in Asia reported yesterday. Founded in April this year, Grvty operates a range of themed platforms providing content targeted at millennials, and also creates branded content for sponsors.
Esquify, a US-based startup that has developed software that supervises human reviews of legal documents, raised $710,000 on Wednesday in a seed round led by VC firm Network Ventures that also featured Foley Ventures, the strategic investment arm of law firm Foley & Lardner, and VC firm Bridge Investments. The round took Esquify’s total funding to $1.25m since it was founded in 2015, and Network Ventures managing director Jeff Maters will join its board of directors.